Assumptions. It’s said that when you assume you make an ass out of you and me. Me? I manage to make an ass out of myself all by myself, thoroughly, at the drop of a real or imagined slight. This one was kicked off by the last carwash….
[Read more…]Time came to write a post today, and in the parched landscape of my tired mind and sick body, there were no ideas to be found. Thank you internet, for leading me to the sweet sips of inspiration delivered to me from Austin Kleon (author of Show Your Work) and Sonia Simone (the wise pink-haired marketer from the Copyblogger team) for inspiring me today.
Of all the sacred holidays on the Wheel of the Year, this day is the one that calls to me in the deepest way. Partly because it’s also my natal birthday, and since my parents died, I’ve felt very close to my own soon-to-be-ancestorhood (some call it realizing that you’re now in the “terminal generation”). Partly because I always feel connected to my own beloved dead, and the Mexican rituals around Day of the Dead have always resonated for me. I usually travel into San Francisco to see the ofrendas (altars) on display. One year I went to Oaxaca and celebrated in the graveyards. Once, about seven years ago, I even got to help build an altar with two other women — but not my design.
So I replied to the call. Of course, I was sure I wouldn’t get chosen. They asked for lists of my shows. I had nothing to share. Well, not true. I have had two art shows, but I had no info about them to send. I did however have my blog, and when I searched “ancestors” I found many links to share. Which I did. And I got chosen!
The idea: I went and got some graveyard dirt (yup, just like it sounds, from a corner of the cemetery). My table will be draped with skull fabric and decorated with my figures and candles (see photo above). I’m going to fill a box with the dirt and provide paper and markers. People will be invited to write the names of their own beloved dead on a strip of paper and drop the paper into the dirt, which I will ritually dispose of the next day.
I’m going to be a Yes to this invitation, show my art, show my heart, despite that inner critic, that one who would have me do nothing, and take no risks. I’m taking all the risks: in art, in business, in relationships, in love.
You should hear that harpy’s voice in my head! Oy.
But this…
It’s my business, yo. And this is the way it works for me.
It’s called the Yoni of Guadalupe. And it may have gotten away from me. You can’t really see the yoni shape any more behind the feathery pubes I put in yesterday. And yet, it’s kinda gorgeous, isn’t it?
I’m showing you my piece that seems to have developed a mind of its own, because (and I learned this in the 12-step rooms) once I stop keeping it to myself, and bring it out of the dark scary closet where my secret fears and failures live, it’s in the light, and I can release all the stories I’m telling myself about fucking it up.
Talk to me, gorgeous. Did you catch a whiff of inspiration from my rambles today, something you can use in your business? Think I’m completely nuts? Bring it! Let’s talk in the comments.
Do you notice sometimes that there’s a need to get real about those things you keep promising yourself you’ll do?
Sometimes your resolve to have more balance in your work and life is so easy to ignore. “I’ll do that tomorrow.”
Well, gorgeous, the universe has a special, twice-a-year invitation for you to get a bit more grounded in your balance. You can take advantage of this like your life depends upon it. Because it does. Or you can keep putting it off. Guess which one I wish for you? And for me?
Some traditional names for September’s Full Moon are:
Take some more time in the sunshine. Wiggle your toes. Dance around the room. And then, when you get back to your workstation, finalize the details that will allow you to complete, and launch, whatever fabulous audacious thing is next for you, so you can move into the next season with your feet on the ground, and your head and heart full of inspiration.
This is a powerful week. With the Pisces Full Harvest Moon, and the equinox, it’s a great time to celebrate your balance.
The Pisces Full Moon is looking toward the future, toward the rebalancing, rebirth and repurposing opportunity that’s coming on the 22nd, at the Equinox, when the Sun enters Libra.
This week, things may feel like they’re speeding up. And your long-haul efforts may feel like they’re paying off. Venus and Saturn are conjunct in Scorpio this week. Outcomes and results will be in your face. What’s left to complete before you move into the next chapter? Forgiveness, compassion and mercy wrap every action you take in love.
This is a guest post, the fourth in the Gratitude Practice series. Every week, I’m posting a submitted article about the powerful practice of gratitude. You are invited! More details here.
Today I welcome Vanessa King, and you can read her Mother, Speaker, Singer, Goddess blog right here.
When I was growing up my dad had a mantra. Every time I felt down about something he would say “I used to feel bad because I had no shoes. Then I met a man who had no feet.” He was trying to tell me that there is always someone worse off than you so be grateful for what you have. Unfortunately I felt this lesson meant that my worries didn’t matter, so while I appreciated that my life could be a lot worse I still felt keenly the things I didn’t have.
Things came to a head last year when I developed quite serious depression and in the times I wasn’t swimming in a black pool of despair I decided that things really had to change. I needed a whole new mind set if I was going to get through the hard times and move into good times. I needed to be completely, truly grateful for things, both big and small and trust that I have the capabilities needed to get to where I want to be.
“God gave you a gift of 86,400 seconds today. Have you used one to say “thank you?” — William A. Ward, American author
I’m grateful for the artist within, for her appearance now and then.
I’m grateful that a cherished friend’s birthday was the opening I needed for this piece of art to emerge.
I’m grateful for the t’ai chi club at the Y. New time slots added for qi gong and t’ai chi practice, time slots that work for me. Yay!
I’m grateful for the abundance of t’ai chi and yoga classes for me to lean into, sink into.
I’m grateful for gorgeous cool summer weather. The rest of the country has had record high temps, and here in the bay area we have had a different manifestation of global warming, one that’s quite livable and lovely.
I’m grateful for reliable wheels.
I’m grateful for farmers markets and summer produce—corn and nectarines, yo.
I’m grateful for games night here, for close friends coming over and playing cards.
I’m grateful for health and for being alive in this moment.
I’m grateful for meditation and stillness.
My tribe of priestesses began this powerful working in February of this year, and it continues until December. You can join us in this powerful working. Here’s how you do it. And there’s a Facebook group too.
Here’s the prayer, which I recited this morning at the water’s edge at Baker Beach.
I dance at the edge of the world
Like my ancestresses before me
I am a sacred vessel
My blood is indomitable
Cradling the now at my breast
Nurturing the future unfolding
There is nothing to fear
I am a Mother of the New Time
I made my prayer, anointed my stone, and did what I do—made ephemeral art.
How powerful, flowers from my garden, in sacred shapes on the beach, an offering to the Goddess, a prayer for the waters, for the women, for the planet. Except for the photos, this art won’t last the day. There’s magic in this, I believe.
What a powerful pair of days, from this Full Moon Lunar Eclipse to tomorrow’s Venus transit of the Sun.
There’s more magic afoot tomorrow. WaterSongLine groups are praying for the health of our waters all day tomorrow during the transit. Find a group near you on their website (click on the Prayer Locations tab), and go make powerful magic!
Love and light, yo.
You deliver and deliver to your clients, and to your business. You write your newsletters, you keep up with your prospects and colleagues in your social networks, you blog… When’s the last time you unplugged and took a breather?
This Memorial Day trip was my first three-day excursion since, well, since last Labor Day weekend at the same event. I’m really good at daily walks, and weekly or biweekly trips to the woods, or to the studio to make art. But getting out of town, and away from routine, that’s a big one. The Northern California Women’s Herbal Symposium. A simply fabulous event that I have now gone to twice, and this time I got to teach!
No more words today, there will be plenty of words coming at you. Just sharing of the photos from my two classes. I facilitated The Mask of Your True Spirit and Lichen Wandmaking. Have a look! Ahh, before I transition to the photos, an invitation: Please share with me how you deliver the necessary downtime, recharge time, to your most precious self. Is this so necessary gift to yourself challenging for you as well? Write a comment, or send me a note at Sue@MagnoliasWest.com
Wake at dawn with a winged heart and give thanks for another day of loving.” —Kahlil Gibran
Wow that’s a beautiful quote, isn’t it? I am calling this one my favorite so far, of the 16 we’ve seen.
I love Gibran. Quite a few of my life’s ah-ha moments have been delivered through his work. Those of you who are parents may find this one landing with a plop in your heart. Of course, I first related to it when I was rebelling against my parents’ authority. Hooboy I wanted them to wise up. Let’s start with this:
I am grateful I’m not that teenager any more.
I am grateful that I have learned some lessons in life.
I am grateful for the healing that is working in every cell of my body.
I am grateful for the replacement compressor in my car. I now have chilly and satisfying A/C! And it’s over 80º today.
I am grateful that I could find the $1,070 to pay for this repair.
I am speechlessly grateful that Custom Paper sent me $130 to defray the cost of my printer replacement. The seed-impregnated paper I got from them killed my inkjet printer. Still shaking my head in amazement.
I am grateful for the bucolic weather and for anticipating the afternoon in the garden tomorrow.
Whether your interest is “purely artistic”, more playful, or deeply soulful, making your Life Mask can show you something truly surprising and wonderful… what I call: “the spirit of the mask”. —Ronda LaRue
I’m so excited about the upcoming Life Mask workshop I’m holding in my home in Oakland. It’s going to be small, intentionally intimate, limited to six women. The exercise of working with a piece that is a reflection of yourself is powerful and transformational.